Analysis of the impact of the parameters of outside air on the condition of indoor air

The article presents the impact of external conditions on the parameters of the air inside the flats and hybrid ventilation. In the vast majority of existing multifamily buildings, as well as in many newly built ones, the way of air exchange is natural ventilation. The air exchange in this system is the result of the temperature difference in the outside of the building and in the ventilation duct as well as the pressure difference caused by the wind. The way to strengthen the exchange of indoor air is to use the hybrid ventilation by using a fan to assist natural air flow in the “no wind” periods. When designing the natural ventilation installation, the extreme conditions outside the building are assumed, not including air parameters changing. This article attempts to identify the conditions of atmospheric air which cause the disturbances of exchange indoor air and it attempts to decide when a fan should work to assist natural ventilation.     

Usefulness of the Modified NRCS-CN Method for the Assessment of Direct Runoff in a Mountain Catchment

The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of modified methods, developed on the basis of NRCS-CN method, in determining the size of an effective rainfall (direct runoff). The analyses were performed for the mountain catchment of the Kamienica river, right-hand tributary of the Dunajec. The amount of direct runoff was calculated using the following methods: (1) Original NRCS-CN model, (2) Mishra—Singh model (MS model), (3) Sahu Mishra Eldho model (SME model), (4) Sahu 1-p model, (5) Sahu 3-p model, and (6) Q_base model. The study results indicated that the amount of direct runoff, determined on the basis of the original NRCS-CN method, may differ significantly from the actually observed values. The best results were achieved when the direct runoff was determined using the SME and Sahu 3-p model.     

Magnetic mineralogy and paleomagnetism of serpentinized ultramafic rocks from the Braszowice-Brzeźnica fragment of sudetic paleozoic ophiolite

Complex paleomagnetic, rock-magnetic and mineralogical studies were performed on serpentinized utramafic rocks from Braszowice-Brze?nica massif (BB) situated at the southern extremity of the Niemcza Shear Zone, close to the Sudetic Marginal Fault. Studies of magnetic minerals revealed presence of several varieties of magnetite grains, and partly altered Cr-spinels. Paleomagnetic studies revealed stable component HS of natural remanence carried by magnetite formed probably during the initial serpentinization. The directions of HS have good grouping within each locality, but differ between localities. Studies of anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) have shown that directions of anisotropy axes are steep instead of horizontal as is common within the Niemcza Shear Zone. Taking advantage of the directions of AMS we rotated the directions of HS and brought them to the reference direction for the Sudetes for 372 Ma. We suggest that after acquiring AMS and HS during the Upper Devonian, the BB became divided into multiple units due to tectonic activity in the region.     

Magnetic iron oxides occurring in chernozem soil from Ukraine and Poland as indicators of pedogenic processes

The paper concerns the complex study of pedogenic and magnetic characteristics of unpolluted soil profiles from Ukraine (3 profiles, of which two represent chernozem and one kastanozem) and Poland (1 profile of chernozem), all with loess parent material. Two of the profiles were situated further south than the other two. The “southern” zone is characterized by lower precipitation rate and higher annual temperatures than the “northern” zone. Depth variations of magnetic properties obtained with various methods were compared with pedogenic characteristics. The common characteristic of all profiles is enhancement of susceptibility in their upper parts related to the presence of superparamagnetic/ single-domain grains of maghemite/oxidized magnetite of pedogenic origin. However, variations of magnetic characteristics measured down depth profiles differ between profiles probably due to differences in climatic conditions and, perhaps, parent loess.     

A mid-Oligocene cooling (Oi-2b) reflected in the dinoflagellate record and in depositional sequence architecture. An integrated study from the eastern North Sea Basin

Integrated micropaleontological (dinoflagellate and foraminifera) and 3D seismic studies of Oligocene surfaces were carried out in the eastern North Sea in order to investigate the influence of the climate on the evolution of depositional geometries and surface morphologies.     

Variability of meteorological elements shaping biometeorological conditions in Szczecin, Poland

In this study, the time and spatial variability of perceptible conditions, determined on the basis of effective temperature in the area of the Szczecin agglomeration are presented. The study was based on air temperature, relative humidity and wind speed data acquired during 2005?C2007 from three emissions stations located in the centre and on the outskirts of the city of Szczecin, Poland. The differences in the values of the measured meteorological components between the studied city locations, in terms of their magnitude and daily structure, were analysed by month and calendar season. The results demonstrate that the temperatures in the city centre were considerably higher throughout the daily cycle, which was most evident during the summer in contrast to winter when the differences were the lowest. Mainly June and July, at 17?C24 UTC (Coordinated Universal Time), were characterized by the average highest intensity of the urban heat island. Reduced relative humidity in the centre of Szczecin, as compared to the suburban areas, was observed particularly during summer. Throughout the daily cycle, this trend was also observed during spring, primarily during the night. Wind speed within the congested housing in the centre of Szczecin was over two-fold lower as compared to the unbuilt-up areas of the outskirts, irrespective of the time of the day and season of the year. Modification of the air humidity, thermal and anemometric conditions was reflected in a considerable variation in heat perception. In summer and spring, between 1300 and 2100 UTC, the most burdening biometeorological conditions, sensed as ??hot?? and ??very hot?? weather, prevailed in the city centre. During winter, on the other hand, the unbuilt-up areas on the city outskirts were the most unfavourable in terms of biothermal conditions, with the predominant categories of perceptible weather conditions throughout the daily cycle being ??cold?? and ??very cold??.     

Temporal and spatial variability of extreme river flow quantiles in the Upper Vistula River basin,Poland

Temporal and spatial variability in extreme quantile anomalies of seasonal and annual maximum river flows was studied for 41 gauging stations at rivers in the Upper Vistula River basin, Poland. Using the quantile perturbation method, the temporal variability in anomalies was analysed. Interdecadal oscillating components were extracted from the series of anomalies using the Hilbert‐Huang transform method. Period length, part of variance of each component, and part of unexplained variance were assessed. Results show an oscillating pattern in the temporal occurrence of extreme flow quantiles with clusters of high values in the 1960–1970s and since the late 1990s and of low values in the 1980s and at the beginning of the 1990s. The anomalies show a high variability on the right bank of the Upper Vistula River basin during the summer season with the highest values in catchments located in the western and south‐western parts of the basin. River flow extreme quantiles were found to be associated with large‐scale climatic variables from the regions of the North Atlantic Ocean, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, Asia, and, to a lesser extent, the Pacific Ocean. Similarities between temporal variability of river flows and climatic factors were revealed. Results of the study are important for flood frequency analysis because a long observation period is necessary to capture clusters of high and low river flows.     

Time-symmetrization and isotropization of an anisotropic cosmological model without inflation

It is shown that growing-entropy stiff-fluid Kantowski-Sachs universes become time-symmetric (if they start with time-asymmetric phase) and isotropize. Isotropization happens without any inflationary era during the evolution since there is no cosmological term here. It seems that this approach is an alternative to inflation since the universe gets bigger and bigger, approaching flatness.     

The role of shoreland development and commercial cranberry farming in a lake in Wisconsin,USA

Musky Bay in Lac Courte Oreilles, Wisconsin, USA, is currently eutrophic. This large, shallow bay of an oligotrophic lake possesses the densest aquatic plant growth and a floating algal mat. Paleoecological reconstructions encompassing the last 130 years, were based on multiproxy analyses of sediment cores from three coring sites, two within the bay and one in the lake itself. These data were compared to historical records of the construction and expansion of two commercial cranberry bogs and shoreline residential homes to identify temporal and causal relations of eutrophication. The proxies investigated included: minor and trace elements; biogenic silica; and the diatom community. Post-depositional diagenesis of organic carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus in the upper 30 cm of the core obscured records of historical ambient nutrient concentrations in the bay obviating their usefulness for this purpose. In contrast, calcium, magnesium, and potassium concentration profiles appeared to reflect runoff of soil amendments applied to the cranberry bogs and aerial fertilizer spraying over the eastern bog adjacent to Musky Bay. The increase in aluminum content since about 1930 coincided with the historical trend in shoreland development and construction of the original commercial cranberry farm. The biogenic silica profile recorded a steady increase of nutrients to Musky Bay over the last several decades. Stratigraphic changes in the diatom community indicated that nutrient input began to increase in the 1940s and accelerated in the mid-1990s with the onset of a noxious floating algal mat. The diatom community indicates the bay has possessed a significant macrophyte community for at least the last 200 years, but increased nutrient input was manifested by a change in the composition, and an increase in the density of the epiphytic diatom community. Cranberry farming appeared to be the major source of nutrients because the diatom community changes occurred prior to the significant increase in residential housing.